This is a blog is related to my academic work in the International Academic Forum on SOGIESC Law but meant to serve anyone who wants to contribute to improve the protection of human rights worldwide. It is intended to keep interested readers informed about legal developments relating to sexual orientation, gender expression and identity and sex characteristics (SOGIESC). Hopefully, it will make it easier to find correct legal information about the developments in all regions of the world and, in particular, with regard to international law.
Repost: When Discrimination is Not Enough – The Indian Supreme Court’s Rejection of Marriage Equality and the Illusion of Fairness
by Akshat Agarwal – Akshat Agarwal is a doctoral candidate at Yale Law School working on the legal regulation of the family.
The Supreme Court, India’s apex constitutional court, recently delivered its disappointing decision in Supriyo Chakraborty v Union India(Supriyo), rejecting marriage equality in Indian law. The much-awaited decision was heard by a constitution bench (five judges) of the Supreme Court and dealt with far-reaching questions of both Indian constitutional law and family law. The decision is characteristic of the Indian Supreme Court’s ongoing phase of great deference to the executive and legislative branches but also marks a sharp and worrying break from the court’s otherwise progressive jurisprudence on issues of gender and sexuality. …
Austria is rehabilitating and compensating victims of criminal persecution for homosexual activities (1945-2002)
The Austrian federal government yesterday passed a bill rehabilitating and compensating the victims of criminal persecution (1945-2002) (revocation of all convictions + compensation for all convicts and for all persons afflicted by criminal investigations).
Compensations are modest:
-> Per conviction: EUR 3.000,–
-> Per each started year of deprivation of liberty: 1.500,– (same amount for 1 day and for one year)
-> Per each set of initiated criminal proceedings: EUR 1.500,–
-> For suffering from particular professional, economic or health detriments or other extraordinary negativ impacts: EUR 1.500,–
The European Court of Human Rights awarded (2002-2006)
-> per conviction: EUR 15.000,– (worth today: EUR 25.000,–)
-> Per month of deprivation of liberty: 5.000,– (worth today: EUR 8.500,–)
-> Per year of deprivation of liberty: 70.000,– (worth today: EUR 117.000,–)
-> For criminal proceedings (resulting in an acquittal): EUR 10.000,– (worth today: EUR 17.000,–)
Canadian Human Rights commissioner resigns over new school pronoun rule to out kids to parents
A Canadian human rights commissioner has resigned after her province’s government said it would use a clause in its constitution to pass legislation preventing children under 16 from changing their names or pronouns at school without parental consent.
World Medical Association unequivocally condemns so-called “conversion” or “reparative” methods
WMA STATEMENT ON NATURAL VARIATIONS OF HUMAN SEXUALITY
Adopted by the 64th General Assembly, Fortaleza, Brazil, October 2013 and revised by the 74th WMA General Assembly, Kigali, Rwanda, October 2023
PREAMBLE
Individuals who identify as LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual, and other identities beyond these) represent a broad and fluid spectrum of natural sexual orientations, gender identities, gender expressions, and sex characteristics. While LGBTQIA+ people may share common cultural and social experiences and shared goals of justice and equity in the face of detrimental, discriminatory treatment and even violence, these are diverse communities facing distinct challenges and with specific needs in healthcare and beyond.
This statement is specifically focused on lesbian, gay, and bisexual people.
Healthcare professionals encounter many aspects of human diversity when providing care, including different natural variations of human sexuality.
A large body of scientific research indicates that being lesbian, gay, or bisexual constitute natural variations of human sexuality without any intrinsically harmful health effects. They do not constitute a disorder or illness that requires treatment or cure and any efforts to do so are contrary to the ethical practice of medicine.
Homosexuality and bisexuality are consequently not included in the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Classification of Diseases (ICD 11).
However, direct and indirect discrimination, both interpersonally and at the institutional level, anti-homosexual or anti-bisexual legislation and human rights violations, stigmatisation, criminalisation of same-sex partnerships, peer rejection, and bullying continue to have a serious impact upon the psychological and physical health of lesbian, gay, or bisexual people. These negative experiences are perpetuated by a lack of education in society on the different natural variations of human sexuality. They lead to poorer health outcomes, including higher prevalence rates of depression, anxiety disorders, substance misuse, and suicidal ideations and attempts. As a result, the suicide rate among lesbian, gay, or bisexual adolescents and young adults significantly higher than that of their heterosexual peers.
These negative outcomes can be exacerbated by other intersectional factors, including but not limited to national origin, race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, gender identity, socioeconomic status, or disabilities.
In addition, false and baseless pathologisation of lesbian, gay, or bisexual identities leaves such individuals at risk of being coerced into so-called “conversion” or “reparative” procedures. These harmful and unethical practices, also sometimes referred to as sexual orientation and gender identity change efforts (SOGICE), are intended to suppress or change a person’s natural sexual orientation or gender identity. These methods have no medical indication, lack any evidence of effectiveness, and represent a serious threat to the health and human rights of those subjected to these practices. They can lead to anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, substance abuse, problems with intimacy, and suicide.
Negative experiences in healthcare may affect the patient-physician relationship, leading lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals to avoid accessing care where it is available. They may also withhold their sexual orientation from physicians due to the resulting lack of confidence that they will receive the appropriate treatment and concerns about the safety and confidentiality of their healthcare environment. Without this information, it may be more challenging for physicians to provide targeted care that takes into account the specific health needs of lesbian, gay, or bisexual patients.
Lesbian, gay, or bisexual physicians, medical students, and other health professionals also face discrimination, disadvantages, marginalisation and bullying in the workplace, in schools, in professional organisations, and beyond. Harmful working and learning environments can lead to stress and burnout, especially among marginalised individuals.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The WMA strongly asserts that being lesbian, gay, or bisexual does not represent a disease, but rather natural variations within the range of human sexuality.
The WMA condemns all forms of stigmatisation, criminalisation of and discrimination against people based on their sexual orientation.
The WMA asserts that psychiatric or psychotherapeutic support, when needed, must not focus upon the variations of sexuality itself, but rather upon conflicts which arise between those variations and religious, social and internalised norms and prejudices, as well as the health needs of the individual patient.
The WMA unequivocally condemns so-called “conversion” or “reparative” methods. These constitute violations of human rights and are unjustifiable practices that should be denounced and subject to sanctions and penalties. It is unethical for physicians to participate during any step of any such procedures.
The WMA calls upon all physicians to:
classify physical and psychological diseases on the basis of clinically relevant symptoms according to ICD 11 criteria regardless of sexual orientation, and to provide quality, evidence-based care in accordance with internationally recognised treatments and protocols and in keeping with the principles set forth in the WMA International Code of Medical Ethics;
provide a safe, respectful, and inclusive healthcare setting for lesbian, gay, and bisexual patients;
foster safe, respectful, and inclusive work and learning environments for lesbian, gay, and bisexual physicians, medical students, and other health professionals;
engage in continuing education and professional development to better understand the specific health needs of lesbian, gay, and bisexual patients and the benefits of certain treatments;
where appropriate, involve patients’ same-sex partners and same-sex parents in healthcare discussions in keeping with the patient’s preferences, respecting their consent, and with due regard for patient confidentiality;
speak out against legislation and practices violating the human rights of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, which may also negatively impact the healthcare system at large;
reject and refuse to participate in any step of so-called “conversion” or “reparative” methods.
The WMA calls upon constituent members and professional associations to:
advocate for safe and inclusive working and learning environments for lesbian, gay, and bisexual physicians, medical students, and other health professionals;
create guidelines for physicians outlining the specific physical and mental health challenges facing lesbian, gay, and bisexual patients, where appropriate;
Where possible, promote changes to medical education, specialty training and CME/CPD curricula to create sensitivity and awareness of the specific health needs of lesbian, gay, and bisexual patients;
establish channels for lesbian, gay, and bisexual physicians to report incidents of discrimination or bias against themselves or lesbian, gay, or bisexual patients;
in environments where confidentiality and patient safety are guaranteed and data cannot be abused, encourage voluntary data collection in the clinical setting and regular reporting on the health outcomes of lesbian, gay, and bisexual patient groups, while also taking intersectionality into account, to ensure and further improve targeted and appropriate healthcare provision;
actively condemn so-called “conversion” or “reparative” methods as unethical.
The WMA calls upon governments to:
reject and repeal anti-homosexual or anti-bisexual legislation;
condemn and ban so-called “conversion” or “reparative” methods;
promote policies that counteract health-related and other inequities caused by overt and implicit discrimination against lesbian, gay, and bisexual people;
encourage education from an early age on diverse natural variations of human sexuality to increase acceptance and with the ultimate aim of promoting better physical and mental health for all individuals.
Ein Urteil des Bundesfinanzhofs stellt klar, dass Paare Ausgaben für eine Leihmutterschaft vollständig selbst bezahlen müssen.
Der Bundesfinanzhof sieht keine Diskriminierung, wenn schwule Paare ihre Kosten für die Leihmutterschaft selbst tragen müssen (Bild: AHert / wikipedia)
6. Oktober 2023, 11:30h 3 Min.
Paare dürfen Kosten für eine Leihmutterschaft im Ausland nicht von der Einkommensteuer absetzen. Das hat der Bundesfinanzhof in München in einem am Donnerstag veröffentlichten Urteil entschieden (VI R 29/21). Das oberste deutsche Gericht für Steuerangelegenheiten bestätigte damit eine Entscheidung der Vorinstanz, des Finanzgerichts Münster (queer.de berichtete). Damit werden Kosten für Leihmutterschaften anders gehandhabt als Ausgaben für die eigene Schwangerschaft, die steuerlich absetzbar sind.
Geklagt hatte ein schwules Ehepaar aus Westfalen, das die Dienste einer Leihmutter in Kalifornien in Anspruch genommen hatte. Die Eizelle stammte von einer anderen in den USA lebenden Frau, die Samenzelle von einem der Kläger. Die beiden Männer machten auf ihrer Einkommensteuererklärung 13.000 Euro als außergewöhnliche Belastung geltend – dabei ging es um Ausgaben etwa für die Beratung, die Reisen sowie Untersuchungen. Das Finanzamt wollte diese Ausgaben aber nicht anerkennen, weil Leihmutterschaft in Deutschland verboten sei.
Die Kläger hatten argumentiert, dass ihre ungewollte Kinderlosigkeit von der Weltgesundheitsorganisation WHO als Krankheit anerkannt sei. Krankheitskosten könnten aber nach deutschem Recht abgesetzt werden. Der Bundesfinanzhof argumentierte jedoch, dass es sich hier nicht um “krankheitsbedingte Aufwendungen” handle: “Denn die ungewollte Kinderlosigkeit der Kläger gründet nicht auf einem regelwidrigen Zustand eines oder beider Partner, sondern auf den biologischen Grenzen der Fortpflanzung”, heißt es in der Entscheidung.
Außerdem habe das Gericht keine verfassungsrechtlichen Bedenken gegen das Verbot der Leihmutterschaft in Deutschland. Es verstoße insbesondere nicht gegen den Gleichbehandlungsgrundsatz in Artikel 3 des Grundgesetzes. Das Verbot knüpfe schließlich “nicht an die Gleich- oder Verschiedengeschlechtlichkeit der Ehe, sondern an die Behandlungsmethode an”. Die Öffnung der Ehe im Jahr 2017 ändere an dieser Tatsache nichts.
Das Bundesverwaltungsgericht sprach dem Kläger einen Schadensersatz in Höhe von 20.000 Euro zu (Bild: János Korom Dr / wikipedia)
Vor rund 50 Jahren wurde ein Wiener Polizist wegen seiner Homosexualität aus dem Dienst entlassen. Dafür erhielt er jetzt eine moderate Geldentschädigung.
6. Oktober 2023, 14:11h 2 Min.
Das Bundesverwaltungsgericht in Wien hat einem früheren österreichischen Polizisten am Donnerstag einen Schadensersatz in Höhe von 20.000 Euro zugesprochen, weil er über Jahrzehnte von den Behörden diskriminiert worden war.
Sein Anwalt Helmut Graupner zeigte sich allerdings mit der Höhe der Zahlungen nicht einverstanden: “Das Unionsrecht verlangt einen abschreckenden Schadenersatz. Abschreckend ist da gar nichts”, erklärte Graupner auf Facebook. “Bei diesem lächerlichen Entschädigungsbetrag steigt mein Mandant, der den Großteil der Prozesskosten selbst tragen muss, nach 1 ½ Jahrzehnten Prozess sogar mit einem Minus aus!” Daher wolle er weitere juristische Mittel ausschöpfen. Graupner und sein Mandant hatten eine Entschädigung in Höhe von 100.000 Euro gefordert.
Der inzwischen 82-jährige Kläger war 1974 in der österreichischen Hauptstadt Revierinspektor, als er wegen einvernehmlichen Sex mit einem Mann unter 18 Jahren nach Paragraf 209 zu drei Monaten Kerker verurteilt wurde. Wäre sein Partner eine Frau gewesen, hätte er nicht gegen das Gesetz verstoßen. Danach wurde er aus dem Polizeidienst entlassen, seine Pensionsansprüche wurden um ein Viertel gekürzt. Grund sei laut Polizei damals die “abwegige Neigung” des Mannes gewesen; “Homosexuelle in den Reihen der Sicherheitsexekutive” würden eine “arge Belastung” darstellen, hieß es weiter.
Seit 2009 kämpft der Kläger mit seinem Anwalt Graupner, der auch Chef der LGBTI-Organisation Rechtskomitee Lambda ist, um eine Entschädigung. 2019 entschied der Europäische Gerichtshof in Luxemburg, dass es sich bei der Strafkürzung der Pension um eine Diskriminierung aufgrund der sexuellen Orientierung handle, die nach EU-Recht verboten ist. Seit 2020 erhielt der frühere Polizist die vollen Pensionszahlungen, auch rückwirkend, allerdings nur bis 2003. Für die Kürzungen in den drei Jahrzehnten davor erhielt er keinen Ausgleich, weil diese Ansprüche bereits verjährt seien.
Trotz des EuGH-Urteils lehnte die verantwortliche Sozialversicherung eine Entschädigung zunächst ab, was das Bundesverwaltungsgericht zunächst als gesetzeskonform einstufte. Das Verfassungsgericht entschied aber im August, dass dem Ex-Polizisten eine Entschädigung zustünde und schickte den Fall zurück ans Bundesverwaltungsgericht, das dann dem Kläger jetzt die 20.000 Euro zubilligte. (dk)
Mauritius is the latest nation to decriminalise same-sex relations in a divided continent
The Mauritius Supreme Court has declared unconstitutional a law that criminalises consensual same-sex acts between adult men. The decision boosts the trend in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region towards decriminalisation. Now, a slight majority – nine out of 16 member states – do not prohibit gay and lesbian sexual relations.
Frans ViljoenDirector and Professor of International Human Rights Law, Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria
Hungary: Constitutional Court Reaffirms Right to Criticize LGBTQ Ideology
Lesbian association Labrisz had sued the Hungarian conservative daily newspaper MagyarNemzet in connection with the children’s book A Fairytail for Everyone (MeseországMindenkié), for an article alleging that the homosexual stories meant for children throughout the book amount to glorifying pedophilia, and the publishers themselves are propagating child abuse. On September 26, the Constitutional Court ruled that the journalist’s right to free speech outweighs the Publisher’s right for protecting its good name.
USA: Wisconsin State Assembly passes ban on gender-affirming care for minors and limit on transgender sports participation
The Wisconsin State Assembly passed three bills on Thursday that ban gender-affirming care for minors and limit transgender participation in sports. In order for the new bills to become state law, they must pass through the other chamber of Wisconsin’s legislature, the State Senate, and be signed by Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers. However, Evers stated on Thursday that he will not sign these bills into law.
The first of the three bills, Assembly Bill 465, prohibits health care providers from “medical intervention practices” on minors if done “for the purpose of changing the minor’s body to correspond to a sex that is discordant with the minor’s biological sex.” The bill defines “biological sex” as the “biological state of being female or male based on sex organs, chromosomes, and endogenous hormone profiles.”
The second bill, Assembly Bill 378, requires the University of Wisconsin only to allow intercollegiate, intramural or club sports teams that are all male, all female or coed. The bill defines sex as “determined by a physician at birth and reflected on the birth certificate.”
And the third bill, Assembly Bill 377, requires each school board, independent charter school and private school that operate or sponsor sports teams to designate the teams as all male, all female or coed. Bill 377’s definition of sex is identical to bill 378.
We continue to see harmful anti-LGBTQ rhetoric in Wisconsin—rhetoric that emboldens hate and violence and that we know only hurts our kids who are already facing significant mental health challenges. We’re going to stop these attacks, and we’re going to do it together.
Additionally, in response to the bills, executive director of the ACLU of Wisconsin Dr. Melinda Brennan stated, “All young people deserve to feel supported, valued and cared for, but the assembly representatives who voted in favor of these bills today sent a message to trans youth that they are the exception. But that couldn’t be further from the truth.”
The bills will now go to the Wisconsin State Senate. Last week, a Wisconsin state judge struck down a public school district policy that allowed students to request to transition to a different gender identity at school without parental consent and over parental objection.
International and Comparative SOGIESC Law - Professor Andreas R Ziegler 
